Sadly, it seems like the only time I get to sew lately is if I sign up for a blog tour or to do testing! My job keeps me pretty busy during the day and my kids’ activities keep me hopping at night. I have to admit though that I’ve started to sew a few things for myself, but this may in fact be the first thing I’ve completed for myself in the last 10-15 years!

The only thing keeping me somewhat same from working the crazy hours this past month is crafting, but sewing isn’t very portable so I’ve been doing a lot of crochet work. I’ll have to share some pictures of those on here next time!

I honestly hate pictures of myself since I still have 30 more pounds I want to shed, but I am super happy that I did finally finish something just for me!!

This is the SisBoom Dana Pattern and I made it as dress length. I used every piece of the two yards of the Black Damask fabric that I had ordered from One Red Blossom back at the end of August. It’s actually pretty speedy for me to use something from that recent of an order and not stash it in my hoard!

I’m very excited to be part of the Sis Boom Just for Me January Tour. The Sis Boom Dana pattern was the first (wearable) thing I ever made for myself. I knew how to work a sewing machine, but the instructions in most patterns went straight over my head, and the resulting garment straight into the bin. I stumbled across a sew along for the Dana top on Facebook about 4 years ago, and discovered Sis Boom patterns, full of instructions and diagrams so clear and detailed that it was like having a friend watching over my shoulder helping me the whole way. I proceeded to make pretty much every Sis Boom pattern in the range before venturing out to other designers, and I’ve never looked back. But I will always have a special place in my heart for the designer that got me started on this journey!

I’m not much of a pattern hacker … yet … that’s something I’d like to do more of this year. So for this tour, rather than changing or restyling a pattern, I wanted to share a story of how sometimes (let’s face it, often, actually!), the first time you make a new pattern for yourself, it doesn’t necessarily work out perfectly. I got the Sis Boom Tortola pattern when it was released a couple of years ago – I’d seen lots of blog posts and photos, and everyone looked great in it. There aren’t many easy top patterns around like this for wovens (i.e. no zips, no buttons, easy rather than really tailored fit), so I was excited to give it a go.

Spoiler alerts …
(1) it was worth the excitement in the end
(2) make sure you read to the end of this post for your chance to win a copy for yourself

This is what I made, and it’s OK, but it’s a bit… meh. There are a few issues here, and all of them down to choices and adjustments I’d made that meant it just didn’t really sing for me. So, let me take you behind the scenes on some little things that made a big difference.

Did you hear it’s “Just For Me January”? I have been sewing for me much more this past few months, so I was very happy to join in the fun with Sis Boom Patterns!

Not long after I set up my instagram account to share my sewing projects, I was contacted by the amazing Jennifer Paganelli. She very generously gave me a copy of the Angie dress pattern to sew up, but I wanted to wait till closer to summer to make it. When I heard about Just For Me January I knew I had no excuse! (Now I just realized that would make more sense if you knew I was in Australia and we are in the middle of summer here right now)!

This is exactly my ideal style of dress, it is so comfortable and is the perfect mix of style and comfort. The brief for this tour was to add a different style spin, so instead of simply reviewing this pattern (which is A+ by the way), I will tell you my inspiration and what I did to tweak it to have a half circle skirt.

I adore the gorgeous eclectic Sis Boom fabric designs and this one was always destined for my first Angie! It’s from the Circa collection and it came from Utopian Threads some time ago here in Australia.

Here I am again on another Sis Boom blog tour! The theme for this blog tour is all about sewing for ourselves, which for me is difficult since I have two small children. Kids are so much easier, cheaper and quicker to sew for – plus they freaking grow like weeds and are constantly needing new clothes.

For this blog tour I enlisted the help of two of my friends who are novice sewers. I don’t think either of them have sewn a garment for themselves before. If you are new to sewing for yourself, you really can’t go wrong with a Sis Boom pattern, the instructions are great and very thorough. Add to that the patterns come with many basic alterations already put into the pattern! And if you know anything about Sis Boom’s blog tour, you know there are some awesome giveaway prizes, be sure to read to the bottom!!

We went to my favorite boutique shop, Mimosa Goods, to take pictures. What I love about Sarah’s shop is that she stocks items that fall in one of three categories; ethically made/fair trade, organic/earth friendly, or locally made. If you are local to central New Jersey her shop is just amazing, and it sits in the middle of downtown Bordentown – which offers lots of little shops and restaurants. If you aren’t local no worries, her little shop is online too! (And no I was not reimbursed in anyway to say all that – I just love her shop and supporting her business.)

Let me introduce you to our first model, Elaine. She sewed up the Devon using a polyknit from JoAnns. This isn’t Elaine’s first rodeo with being a part of a Sis Boom blog tour, her daughter was a model for the “Back To School” tour that was hosted in August. Her husband was also the photographer for our photo shoot – how awesome is that!

Elaine chose to go with the gathered sleeves and ribbon tie neck options.

In terms of being a beginner sewer, this top was fairly easy. The most difficult thing about this shirt was the fabric – oh that fabric. We actually gave up trying to sew it on her machine and used my serger and sewing machine. After that, in terms of construction, the gathers and attaching them was something Elaine and I did together. Elaine figured out the neckline with the notch on her own!! This pattern is also stellar in terms that is has a loose fit and the option to have an adjustable neckline – this really allows you to sew up a garment that you will wear.
Finish reading this blog post over on Troops to Tots….

Today Teronia of Sew Haute took our Rebecca Shift Dress to the next level with simple black fabric and ruching. Inspired by a $1500 Dolce and Gabbana dress, Teronia sewed a dress just as beautiful but much more affordable.

Just For Me January: Sis Boom Blog Tour
By Teronia Wilson

I know lots of people would agree that 2016 was rough and I didn’t think so until something happened right before the holidays. So, in order to have something to look forward to and to celebrate my birthday (January 31st) I joined the Sis Boom – Just for Me January blog tour.

I chose the Rebecca Shift Dress, but what I had been craving for a long time was a sheath dress.

As I scoured the internet for inspiration I found this little gem styled so many different ways.

I was in love!

This is a Dolce and Gabbana design that retails for $1500+. Whew…..that’s a pretty penny. And what a great challenge. I wanted to do this soooo bad, but would I be skilled and/or lucky enough to get it right?

Indu of Kaleidothought is here with this lovely Shana Bell Sleeve tunic. The fabric color and fit look amazing on her. Read along to find out more.
Just for me January – Sisboom Pattern Co. Blog Tour

I’m so excited to be part of the Just for me January Blog tour hosted by Sisboom Pattern Company. This also happens to be my first post and first sewing project of the new year (yeah I’ve been slacking off) so hopefully that means I’ll be sewing a whole lot of clothes for myself this year.

I have never sewn with Sisboom patterns before, so I had several great patterns to choose from but with the insanely cold weather around here, sleeveless was not an option for me. Also I have a whole pinterest board on bell sleeves that I have been wanting to try so I picked the Shana Bell sleeved tunic. I love the simple A line shape of this tunic and the gathered bell sleeve.

We had some really good weather this weekend so I’m glad we were able to get outdoor pictures, I never get decent indoor shots.
I made a couple changes to the pattern that I will get to in just a minute but first the fabric. It’s a border print cotton gauze fabric that I purchased last year with the intention of turning it into a summer maxi for me but instead ended up making a pretty Sullivan maxi for my daughter. The remaining was not enough for my maxi anymore so the fabric was sorta sitting there waiting for the right project. As soon as I picked this pattern, I knew it had to be this fabric, it has a good drape and I love how the flowers are densely populated in the bottom and thin out towards the top.

This tunic has a fair amount of ease but along with the shape of the sleeves and drape of the fabric, it works perfectly. I made the 3/4th length sleeves but the pattern has cut lines for varying sleeve lengths so you can choose the length based on where you want the sleeve to hit you. The tunic length also has several cut lines, I chose the shortest cut line and shortened the bodice by about 1″ at the waist because i’m only 5′.

I love when a blog post can do double duty. Even better when it can go for QUINTUPLE duty! And today’s post is going to do just that.

#1- This is absolutely outfits that I have worn in January. Yes, I really do wear sleeveless dresses in January. Crazy much? Maybe, but I’ve yet to find a woven sleeved dress that doesn’t have a puff sleeve that makes me this happy. #watchawearinjanuary

#2- A fabulous dress for my Sew Along and Sewing Contests: Deep Stash Edition. I bought the Carolina Mae when it first came out. I’ve made it several different times in different sizes as I’ve gained and lost weight. I’m happy to be sewing it again. The glitter dot is a new fabric. I don’t keep anything that fancy just sitting in my stash. But the two scroll work fabrics have been sitting in my stash since December 2015.The glitter dot was made AFTER January 1st, so it fits into the challenge. #sswdeepstash

#3 The day to night challenge with Elizabeth Made This. The Day to night challenge is an opportunity to make a DAY and a NIGHT dress. Must be sewn AFTER January 8th. That throws out my Sis Boom Carolina Mae, but my Candy Skulls Angie was made just this week, so it completely fits in here. Stay tuned to see what I end up making for the NIGHT part of the challenge.

#4 As part of the Sew Alongs and Sewing Contests group, they were also having a Ridiculous Fabric Pop-up Contest. You better believe I entered my Sis Boom Angie. When I think Candy Skulls, I immediately think of the Mexican, “Day of the Dead.” We celebrated Day of the Dead this year with my family, so its hard to think of the candy skulls outside of November 1st. But man, they’re colorful and fun and have all the colors I love. Black, fuchsia, turquoise. They’re awesome. And I aim to wear them all year round.

#5- Whew… Finally the actual reason I can justify a whole post, the Sis Boom Just For Me January. #justformejanuary I’ve actually made 2 new Sis Boom Dresses just since January 1st. And we count the ones I made BEFORE the new year, I’m up to 5 dresses since December 1st. You might say, I’m in love.

The Sis Boom Just For Me Blog Tour rolls on. This time all the way from the Netherlands!!! We are thrilled for Miranda of the Insinration Blog be our stop today.

Today, I am part of the Sis Boom “Just for me January” blog tour. The title of the tour is rather self explanatory. We are all sewing something just for ourselves. I picked something I have been planning for a while but just did not get around to. A bit over a year ago I was part of a Sis Boom pattern tour for which I made this dress and during the tour I came across somebody sewing a Jaimie, and I was immediately sold on the pattern. I know that it is too cold to wear it now, but now I had a great reason to sew one, and I somehow have the tendency to forget sewing myself summer clothes, now I am prepared.

We were allowed to play with the pattern and fabrics, so of course I did. I decided to do another knitification trick and sewed a pattern for woven fabrics in jersey. I therefore picked one size smaller than I should have, according to the measurement table and it worked out great. I used a very drapey fabric, because for me that fits best with a nice summer day. We are in the midst of winter at the moment, so no way that I could have taken outside pictures, but inside it was nice and warm during the shoot. The dress gave me an instant summer feel.

I decided not to make pleats in the waistband, but to just gather the sides of the waistband. The fabric turned out a bit too drapey for that though, the gatherings would have looked better in a bit sturdier fabric but you get the idea. The pattern actually tells you to secure the pleats through a few vertical seams, that also might have been a good idea for this knit gathered dress. I really like the width of the shoulder bands, they nicely cover my bra.

Well, after a whirlwind Holiday Season of sewing for everyone else, how about a little Spring-inspired selfish sewing? And what better way than to join the annual “Just for ME January” event at SisBoom?

Every year, SisBoom devotes the entire month of January to focus on women’s sewing with a blog tour, featuring their patterns. Today is the first day and I am the lucky one that gets to kickstart this fun event that is sure to inspire some fresh new looks for the new year!

Of course, being a new year and all, I had to do a little scrolling through Pinterest for the down low on what to expect in fashion this year. From what I’ve noticed, 2017 fashion trends are looking a little on the softer and more earthy side. Lots of floral, greens and lace. Oh my gosh! All my favorites! Here is a 2017 Pantone chart I found on Pinterest. I am loving that bottom row with the pinks and greens❤

And, here is my inspiration pic (also from Pinterest). A sweet eyelet lace tank with peplum-styled ruffle from Anthropology. Perfect to wear under a cardigan now while it’s cold out, or by itself as an easy breezy top for Summer. But who wants to pay Anthropology prices? Not me! That’s why I sew😉

And my pattern, Sis Boom’s Dana Top/Dress. A gorgeous top/dress with a sweet little ruffle on top and optional flutter sleeves. You’ll notice the absence of spaghetti straps and peplum on this pattern. As cute as the spaghetti straps are on my inspiration pic, for the sake of being modest, I’ll be wearing a bra and cami under my eyelet top.The wider straps on the Dana Top will allow me to do this 😉

(btw: I received this pattern for free for my participation in this blog tour. Pretty sweet, eh?)

And, last but not least is my material. A round eyelet tablecloth a family member found for me at a local thrift shop. That ruffle will work great as my peplum😉

Thank you for an amazing 2016!!! We hope you had a year of love, joy, peace and wonderful sewing and craft projects. We are looking forward to 2017 with our upcoming Sunny Isle release and few new Sis Boom endeavors we will be announcing soon.

We are kicking of 2017 with an awesome PDF pattern sale and blog tour. The PDF pattern sale runs January 1st to January 7th. Use code JUSTFORME2017 in our Pattern Shop or in our Etsy store.

Then, join us for the first day of our blog tour on January 4th as Denise of DIY Crush kicks us off. The tour runs the whole month of January and we hope it inspires you to try something new. Don’t forget our amazing community of sewers, the Sis Boom Pattern Co Facebook Group, should you have any questions about our patterns or sewing in general.